


A Pair of Strays

by shherie



Category: Naruto
Genre: Animals, Cats, M/M, Moving In Together, POV Sasuke, Pets, Snakes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-17
Updated: 2016-08-17
Packaged: 2018-08-09 09:01:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,929
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7795588
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shherie/pseuds/shherie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>{NaruSasu} The animal shelter!AU that no-one asked for. Your classic tale of crazy-cat-boy meets illegal-rescue-centre-owner and they fall in love. Enjoy!</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Pair of Strays

**{When Sasuke met Naruto}**

By the time he met Naruto for the first time, Sasuke already had four rescue cats living in his apartment and half a dozen neighbourhood strays who he fed regularly. So really, who was he to judge someone who spent all his time in an animal shelter obsessing over his charges…?

Sasuke had visited the ramshackle, run-down shelter as a last resort, when all the other vets on his list were too busy to help. There he found Naruto covered in a litter of baby foxes (“Kits, Sasuke, _kits_!!” he’d later insist) and blessedly, he agreed to treat Sasuke’s latest rescue. And so Elizabeth had survived, and Sasuke had fallen in love (even if it would be a long time before he admitted it).

It was only a few days later, when the two of them had stumbled into Naruto’s apartment blindingly drunk after celebrating Elizabeth’s recovery, that Sasuke realised what he’d actually gotten himself into. They were already half-naked, clothes strewn from the elevator to the front door, tearing at each other’s skin; Naruto was giggling against Sasuke’s mouth and gripping his hair tight through his fingers. Naruto tripped and Sasuke fell right down on top of him, drawing even more laughter from the blonde. Sasuke pushed himself up to sit more comfortably on Naruto’s hips, and that’s when he saw it.

“Uh, Naruto…?” he slurred, staring over the blonde to the window, moonlight flooding in through the open curtains. “Is that a _fox_?” He squinted, trying to see if the brown ball in the fox’s mouth was actually _moving_ , or if he was just really, _really_ drunk.

Naruto grinned and angled his head backwards to see where Sasuke was looking. “Oh hey, Kyuu, ‘sup- KYUU!!” he suddenly shrieked, pushing Sasuke off of him and stumbling to his feet. “Let Mrs. Hingleton go AT ONCE!!”

…yes, that was when Sasuke discovered that Naruto not only had a _fox_ living in his apartment (which, incidentally, was four times smaller than Sasuke’s sprawling place), but a _hedgehog_ as well.

**{Moving Day}**

It would be wise, Naruto and his co-vet Juugo had decided, if they quietly shut down their Tokyo animal shelter and set up somewhere else before the authorities found out just how weak their claim to be a “legal, qualified rescue centre” actually was.

And so Sasuke found himself, through very little choice of his own, leaving behind his modern, comfortable Tokyo apartment and moving to the country, to a hundred-year-old wooden ruin in the woods that Sasuke was _sure_ could collapse at any moment.

“The roof’s going to leak in the rain, you know,” Sasuke grumbled, carting another box through the house and sneezing as his footsteps swept up a cloud of dust. He scowled, wondering how on earth he’d let himself get into this mess.

Naruto grinned from where he stood on the veranda, surveying his new front yard. “Ahh maybe Sas, but it’s so close to the new shelter! And all the nature- look how happy Kyuu is!” he added, looking delighted as he watched his precious pampered fox running in hyperactive circles out in the overgrown garden.

“At least no-one will see the little terror out here,” Sasuke muttered, dumping the box in their empty living room and brushing off his clothes. Too many of Naruto’s neighbours in Tokyo had clued in to just how unusual Naruto’s “dog” really was.

“Let’s set up the aviaries next, Sas,” Naruto said, “the birds must be properly annoyed by now- Kyuu!” he called out. “Stay away from that crate- KYUU!! Leave Mrs. Hingleton ALONE!!”

Sasuke sighed, and headed to the bedroom to check on his cats.

**{Of _course_ the roof leaks}**

Sasuke muttered to himself as he moved through the house emptying jars and buckets full of rainwater. He’d been up on the roof several times this week trying to patch the leaks, despite having no clue what he was doing. And still there so much water dripping everywhere! He swore as he almost tripped over Pippin the tortoise on his way to the veranda. “Watch it!!” he scowled, shooing the reptile away whilst staying clear of its snappy jaws.

He fetched his hastily-collected laundry from the veranda, passing the aviaries as he did so and ignoring the parrot’s squawking calls of _pretty kitten, pretty kitten_. He heard the rice cooker ding from the kitchen, letting him know that dinner was ready; but Naruto wasn’t home yet, damn him. _Looks like we’ll be eating late **again**._

When Naruto finally did get home, with Kyuu in his arms, both the blonde and the fox were soaked through from the rain. “Sasuke!!” Naruto greeted him with delight, dumping Kyuu on the ground and shaking his hair out just like the fox did.

“You’re late,” Sasuke said, glaring at him from the kitchen table where he was laying down a table-cloth and candlesticks.

“Ahh, sorry kitten!!” Naruto hastily said, coming up and swooping Sasuke into a hug from behind. “But the Kato’s dalmatian had her puppies! Mrs. Kato asked me to help out, it was _amazing_ , and the puppies are _adorable_ -”

“-we are not getting a puppy,” Sasuke interrupted, wriggling out of Naruto’s grasp.

Naruto stared at him with wide, startled eyes. “But _Sasuke_!” he protested at once, fishing his phone out of his pocket. “Just _look_ at them, I took all these photos, they’re so _cute_ \- hey, what’s this??” he added, finally noticing the table he was standing next to.

“It’s a table, dead-last,” Sasuke said, rolling his eyes. He fetched their salad from the fridge and the baked fish from the oven. “I’m sick of eating on the floor!” They’d left his Tokyo apartment fully furnished to get better rent, and all of Naruto’s furniture had been _plastic_ , so…

“You bought a table?” Naruto asked, seating himself down, eyes still wide.

“I _found_ it,” Sasuke corrected. “In the storeroom. And I sanded it. But it’s not varnished yet, so if you spill anything on it I will _kill_ you-”

“Such a clever kitten!!” Naruto exclaimed with a delighted laugh, lifting the tablecloth to get a better look. “You’re amazing!”

“Damn straight,” Sasuke said under his breath. “I’ve got to have something to do, since you leave me here alone every single day-”

“Ahhh I know, I know, I’m so sorry Sas!” Naruto quickly interrupted. “It’s just so hard to get all the proper permits, and Juugo’s already got so many animals he wants to take in…”

_Of course he does_. “It’s the weekend now,” Sasuke said pointedly.

“Right, right, of course, we’ll spend every second together, I promise,” Naruto said, leaning over to press a placating kiss to Sasuke’s cheek. “God, this food looks _delicious_ , you’re incredible, Sas!”

“Hmph,” Sasuke said to that, picking up his chopsticks. “I have a very long list of things for you to do this weekend,” he added, digging into his dinner. And he would damn well make sure every single item got completed to his satisfaction.

**{The walls have eyes}**

Sasuke curled around Naruto’s warm body, thoroughly sated after they had completed items #4 & #9 off the To-Do list.

“Mmm…that better have done it, Sas,” Naruto said wearily, tugging Sasuke closer and trailing a hand down his spine. “I don’t have any energy left at _all_ …”

“You’ve done very well,” Sasuke praised, “but no energy left at all? I was thinking we could-”

Naruto groaned and Sasuke giggled at him, moving swiftly away as Naruto tried to swat his backside. “You’re a devil, Sas,” Naruto whined. “And I’m almost six months younger than you, I should be able to keep up- Sas? Wait, Sas, what are you doing-” he squeaked, as Sasuke crawled back to his side and snuck a hand under the blankets.

“We might as well do #11 as well,” Sasuke said, burying under the blankets and pressing a sticky kiss to Naruto’s stomach. He glanced up as Naruto pulled a corner of blanket aside to peer at him in disbelief.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Naruto said, even as his cheeks reddened and his hands slipped down to cup Sasuke’s cheeks. “You-”

“-hang on,” Sasuke said, sitting up and narrowing his eyes. He looked around the room, his skin tingling. “Something’s wrong. Someone’s _watching_ us.”

“If _I_ can get used to Tiger, so can _you_ ,” Naruto complained, shooting a glare at poor little Tiger, who was hiding in the corner waiting for her precious Sasuke to finish his human activities.

“It’s not Tiger,” Sasuke said, “and don’t be mean, she’s had a very difficult life!” The little tabby was so shy and anxious that she spent most of her time hiding under Sasuke’s pillow. Sasuke pushed himself up off the futon and moved to the light switch, staring at the window in suspicion.

“We don’t even have any neighbours,” Naruto protested.

“I know that,” Sasuke shot back. But he turned on the light anyway, and there sitting on the windowsill were their two white doves, staring right at them.

“You naughty birds!” Naruto squawked, jumping to his feet and rushing over. “What are you doing there?!”

Sasuke growled under his breath and stalked out of the room towards the aviaries. Oh, no wonder Kyuu had been off hiding all day! And yes, there it was, a hole in the ground under the temporary cages and a small section of wiring torn away. More than enough room for two cheeky, undersized doves to escape.

“Kyuu!” Naruto exclaimed when he saw the hole, walking up to Sasuke with Marie and Antoinette in his hands.

“My cats would never do this,” Sasuke muttered, pushing the wire back into place and opening the door.

“Elizabeth might,” Naruto said back, carefully returning the birds back home.

“Elizabeth is an angel,” Sasuke retorted.

“She’s always picking fights with Kyuu!” Naruto argued, even as he tugged on Sasuke’s wrist until they were both moving back towards the bedroom.

_Yes, and she always wins_ , Sasuke thought proudly, even though Kyuu was in almost perfect shape and Elizabeth was missing an eye, a leg, _and_ her tail. She was tough, that one, a true queen. “Our kids are such good friends,” Sasuke cooed, latching onto Naruto’s side as they reached their room, pushing Kyuu out of his mind.

“Sasuke,” Naruto whined. “I’m so _tired_ -”

“I’ll do _all_ the work,” Sasuke promised, manoeuvring Naruto back down to the futons with a gleam in his eyes. Tomorrow was Monday and Naruto would go back to work, but for the rest of the night, the blonde was all _his_.

 

**{Winter is coming}**

Sasuke was so engrossed in his YouTube tutorial that he didn’t even hear Naruto get home; he did, however, hear him come into the study. Sasuke slammed his laptop closed with a small squeal, startling poor Tiger who went running off to the bedroom instantly.

“Sas? What are you doing?” Naruto asked, seeming confused as he glanced at the closed laptop and the knitting needles in his hands.

“What are you doing home so early?!” Sasuke demanded, frazzled and embarrassed to be caught in the act.

“Don’t try to distract me, Sas!” Naruto said with a grin, coming closer. “Where did you find those?”

“In the storeroom,” Sasuke mumbled, feeling his cheeks grow warm. “I thought- it’ll be winter soon, Merry and Pippin will get cold, so…”

Naruto blinked. “You’re knitting something for the tortoises?!” he exclaimed.

“Shut up,” Sasuke said with a growl, throwing the needles and wool to the floor in despair. “It’s not even working, anyway! I’ll just buy something,” he grumbled. Merry would need something for sure, with his damaged shell. Back in Tokyo, Naruto had kept them inside the shelter all winter, but here they preferred to spend their days outdoors.

“Aww Sasuke, you’re the sweetest thing!” Naruto cooed, enveloping him in a huge bear hug. “Those two are so lucky to be living with you!”

“Hmph,” Sasuke simply replied, accepting the hug with grace. “So what are you doing home? It’s not even four yet.”

“Ah!!” Naruto said, letting go and jumping up and down a little. “Great news! Our last permit got approved today- so we can open the shelter whenever we want! Let’s go celebrate, Sasuke!!”

 

**{Bathtime}**

They did a _lot_ of celebrating that night, going out for dinner and “a drink or two” before stumbling home and climbing into their giant bathtub. It was heated with _firewood_ of all things, and was more than large enough for them both- Tokyo had nothing like this!

“Ahhh, this is the life!!” Naruto exclaimed, leaning backwards and resting against Sasuke’s chest.

“We’ve got enough room to stretch out, you know,” Sasuke grumbled, even as he nipped Naruto’s shoulder and kissed his neck, nuzzling into the blonde’s vibrant hair.

“We’ve got _heaps_ of room in this house!” Naruto added with a tipsy giggle, slumping down in the water and almost going under before Sasuke caught him and propped him up. “Hey, Sasuke, I never would have thought I’d be living like this! Never would have pictured it when I was a kid…”

“Out in the country, you mean?” Sasuke queried, slipping his hands down to Naruto’s hips and sighing happily to himself to be holding such a perfect specimen.

“Ohhh no, I mean just- didn’t you ever wonder how things would turn out for you? Never thought I’d be this lucky…”

“You always get so sentimental when you’re drunk, Naruto,” Sasuke teased.

“’m not drunk!” Naruto protested with a little hiccup. “I’m just saying! This place is old and rundown, but I like it. It feels like _home_. Don’t you think so?”

“Yes,” Sasuke replied, and was surprised to find that he meant it. He knew that the idea of “home” meant a lot to Naruto- he’d had so many foster homes before his godfather finally won custody of him when he was twelve. As for Sasuke, well; there was his brother, but other than that, it was just his uncle- and Sasuke certainly had no affection for _him_. Sasuke had left home when he was sixteen and never looked back.

Yes; maybe he _was_ lucky to be living out here with Naruto. In a house that leaked when it rained. Where their clothes were still in boxes because they didn’t have any cupboards yet. Where the cats- well, Elizabeth and Rio, at least- and the tortoises were continuously fighting over territory.

“I love you, Sas,” Naruto slurred, spinning around to face Sasuke and almost slipping under the water again.

“Yes, I know,” Sasuke said, leaning forward and nipping Naruto’s nose.

Naruto grinned. “And you love me too, don’t you kitten?” he said, his grin becoming a leer as his hands explored down Sasuke’s sides.

“I left Tokyo for you, idiot,” Sasuke replied, only feeling slightly guilty for not saying the words out-loud. He just wasn’t used to all that mushy stuff. But Naruto never pushed him; really, Sasuke was lucky to have found him. Yes, things were great-

-okay, maybe Naruto wasn’t the only one who got sentimental when drunk. He growled under his breath when Naruto’s hands got a little too far south, and the blonde giggled.

“Let’s go to bed,” Naruto suggested, and Sasuke thought that was a _great_ idea.

 

**{The centre of everything}**

_…Naruto’s warmth and aura surrounds him, consumes him, that light is all through his body and shimmering across his skin. They’re tangled together, panting, trembling, breathing together; if they could get any closer to each other they would. Naruto rests his head against Sasuke’s shoulder, a steady stream of praises flowing from his mouth, pretty kitten, my Sas, my perfect beautiful Sasuke, **mine** , and Sasuke feels like he’s found the centre of his life. It’s where he belongs. No-one’s ever looked at him like Naruto has, no-one has seen inside of him and still **loved** him. _

_I love you, Sasuke thinks to himself as they come down from the high; he says it out-loud, and Naruto smiles at him, jubilant, bright, and presses a warm kiss to his cheek. Naruto laughs, and pulls the blankets around them both._

_Tiger takes this as her cue and sneaks back to the futon, curls up against Sasuke’s neck; Naruto reaches out and softly, gently strokes her ear. She doesn’t move. She’s been chased away twice tonight because of ‘human activities’ and now she’s staying put. Besides, the loud blonde one’s just becoming a part of the furniture now._

_Kyuu returns to the room, lies at the end of the bed on Naruto’s feet, still tangled with Sasuke’s. The fox whines softly. Sasuke doesn’t kick him away. He’s content, he’s happy; he’s **home**. _

**{It’s a big house, after all}**

Sasuke sighed, closing his laptop and pushing it away from him. His latest book was due at his editor’s in only two weeks, but he just couldn’t concentrate in this house. It was too _big_. This study alone was bigger than Naruto’s apartment had been! And even with their dozen animals roaming around, it was too quiet when Naruto wasn’t home.

This house needed Naruto’s presence to energise it, just like Sasuke himself had come to rely on the blonde to lift him, to shape his life and brighten his mood.

How had it all happened? How had he let himself fall so hard, so _fast_? It had been just two years since they’d met, and only a few months since they’d bought this place and moved in together officially. And yet even now Naruto left him just as breathless as the first time Sasuke saw him in the shelter, covering in squealing, wriggling fox kits. He couldn’t imagine his life now without his idiot dead-last blonde.

…speak of the devil. His phone buzzed; a message from Naruto. _Come down to the shelter babe, got something to show you!_ it read.

Sasuke sighed again and shrugged to himself. Well, why not? It’s not like he was getting anything done here. So he stood and went outside, fetching Mrs. Hingleton and the tortoises and returning them to their enclosures. He was pretty sure they wouldn’t wander too far away even if they managed to get through the fence, but better to be safe than sorry. Then he said goodbye to the cats and grabbed his keys, and walked the three kilometres to the centre.

It still embarrassed him to see “Uchiha Rescue Centre and Veterinary Clinic” painted on the sign outside, but Naruto had insisted on Sasuke getting recognition for his investment- they’d used that money to pay the deposit on the clinic. Well, this was probably the only place that had his family’s name on it that he approved of; so that was something at least.

He walked through the door and waved to Juugo sitting in the office, and rolled his eyes at Kyuu, who’d jumped up and down with excitement to see someone approaching but then had scuttled away in disappointment when he’d realised who it was. “Naruto?” he called out, heading instinctively for the clinic rooms out the back.

“In here, Sasuke!” Naruto called back. “You won’t believe this!”

And there, sitting on the examination bench, was a snake. An actual _snake_. In a pathetically small, dirty enclosure, cowering under a tree branch.

“The police brought him in this morning, the poor guy!” Naruto said, leaning down to peer through the murky glass. “He’s so underfed and his UV lamp doesn’t even work! He should be _dead_. You poor thing,” Naruto cooed, and the snake inside the enclosure moved slightly in response.

Sasuke stepped closer. The snake’s home was a mess, and the creature himself was clearly not well, his scales dull and eyes cloudy, and his movements sluggish. Sasuke felt a pang of sympathy somewhere deep inside. “Can you help him?” he asked.

“I hope so,” Naruto answered. “Juugo’s sourcing a proper UV lamp and some mice now, and we’ll get them shipped express. There’s a big fish tank out the back that we should be able to modify for him. The most important thing is to keep his stress levels down. He’s very unhappy.”

“He needs more things to hide under,” Sasuke said. His brother had had a snake when they were growing up. Sasuke wasn’t the only animal-obsessed one in the family.

Naruto nodded. “I found this tree branch, but I was hoping to find some rocks as well. And maybe a larger one for him to sun on, for when he’s feeling braver?”

“Right,” Sasuke said. “I’ll go have a look around outside. Did his owners have a permit?”

“Of course not,” Naruto admonished. “Juugo was _so_ angry. They’ll be fined, and the money will be sent here to help him recover and find a new home.”

“He’s coming home with us,” Sasuke announced, mentally planning where they could put a large enclosure; somewhere Elizabeth wouldn’t bother it. His study, maybe.

Naruto blinked. “Uh, what?”

“We’re taking him, obviously,” Sasuke said. “He needs full-time attention and stability. I can watch him during the day- you can’t, not if you have other patients.”

Naruto breathed in and out audibly. “Sasuke!” he gasped. “That- but it’s _such_ a lot of work, I mean, and all the other animals-”

“I _like_ the other animals,” Sasuke interrupted. “And I like this one too. Let’s keep him, Naruto.”

“I want to keep him,” Naruto said at once. “Obviously. But you have to tell me, Sasuke, when it gets too much- I never want to turn any animal away, I just, I want to help them _all_ , and I-”

“-you’re full of love,” Sasuke said, stopping Naruto’s run-on declaration. He stepped closer and pressed a quick kiss to his cheek, before turning for the door. “I’ll tell you when it’s enough, trust me. For now, I’m going hunting for sticks and rocks.”

And that’s exactly what he did. He put it out of his mind that poor Tiger would be horrified by the new addition to the household. She would get used to it; this was their life now, and it was a pretty damn good one. Sasuke wouldn’t have it any other way.

 

 

**_Bonus- who’s who!_ **

**Kyuu:** the ninth in his litter, the runt. He couldn’t be released into the wild with his siblings, so Naruto kept him. He is insanely jealous of Sasuke and Sasuke’s cats.

**The cats:** Elizabeth, who was run over by a car and very badly injured; Rio, a blind but very beautiful ragdoll; and Tiger, the anxious tabby. Sasuke thought a strong name would make her feel braver. He had two other rescues in Tokyo, who he blackmailed Itachi into adopting.

**Mrs. Hingleton:** a hedgehog being kept illegally in Tokyo and surrendered to the rescue centre. Naruto fell in love with him and couldn’t give him up. Yes, he’s a boy.

**The tortoises:** Merry  & Pippin, age unknown, found abandoned outside the shelter. Merry has a damaged shell and Pippin’s slightly lame. Sasuke secretly likes them a lot, even though they’re so grumpy and temperamental.

**The parrot:** Mimi, a very talented mimic found flying lost around Tokyo. Mimi will almost certainly go to a new home one day, but needs some more time to recover first.

**The doves:** Marie  & Antoinette, found in Tokyo, obviously having been in fights with stray cats. After they’ve healed properly they’ll be put up for adoption.

**The snake:** Matthew Crawley, the newest addition. Still very weak after his traumatic experience, but Sasuke and Naruto will nurse him back into health. He’ll always be small and meek, like Tiger, but very much in love with his dads.


End file.
